Longmont to vote on flood bonds

City will ready $20 million bond issue for June 24 vote

A $20 million bond issue to help Longmont fend off the next big flood is expected to go to voters June 24, the same day as Colorado primary elections.

City officials said they wanted the early date so the bonds could be issued as soon as possible, and so the election could be coordinated with the primary, saving money.

The City Council voted 7-0 Tuesday to prepare the ballot issue; the exact language will be approved at a later meeting.

"I see this bond election as vital," Councilman Gabe Santos said.

City officials hope to make the St. Vrain River capable of holding a 100-year flood all the way through Longmont, something it has never been able to do. Before September's flood, the St. Vrain's maximum capacity was about 5,000 cubic feet per second; a 100-year flood carries 10,000 cfs.

That kind of carrying capacity comes with a price tag between $65 million and $80 million, public works director Dale Rademacher said. With $20 million in "flood bonds," he said, the city could pull together a stronger local match to attract state and federal dollars.

If those bonds pass, he said, the city could put together $47.6 million itself, including:

• $8.5 million in already-approved bridge work at Main Street, Sunset Street and South Pratt Parkway.

• $7 million from the street fund (which is due to be reapproved by voters in November).

• $1.6 million in open space and water fund money.

• $500,000 from the conservation trust fund.

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• A possible $10 million in "alternative project" funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, money that would normally go to re-creating the eastern stretch of the St. Vrain that could be used elsewhere if the river's course is left alone.

Even with the bonds, that still leaves a funding gap of $17.4 million to $32.4 million. But the money can let Longmont be in a stronger position to get funds from FEMA, the Army Corps of Engineers and from Community Development Block Grant disaster recovery grants. The city plans to apply for $52 million of grants from all those sources, but doesn't expect to get everything.

"I think if we get a fraction of that, we should be happy," Rademacher said of the FEMA grant application, a shot at a $37 million target.

Councilwoman Sarah Levison asked if June was the right time. Primaries tend to have lower turnouts, she said, and many independent voters may miss the ballot altogether because they don't vote in a party primary.

Councilman Brian Bagley responded that primary voters are also often more motivated. Even if it's a smaller number, he said, it may also be more informed.

"It does make sense to have all the dominoes in place," Mayor Dennis Coombs said in supporting an early election.

Rademacher also reviewed the preparations for spring runoff, expected to being in early to mid-May. A recent study by CH2M Hill found that even in its present condition, with debris still left to remove, the St. Vrain's channel inside Longmont could still hold up to 3,000 cfs. Over the last 30 years, the city's largest spring runoff has been 1,900 cfs.

For three miles west of Longmont, the study found that the channel was capable of even holding a 100-year flood.

Pizzeria 'petulance'

A post-election controversy threw sparks again Tuesday, as Abbondanza Pizzeria owner Bob Goff called for Councilwoman Polly Christensen to resign.

Last year near Election Day, Christensen left a note for Goff in the restaurant that complained about a Bryan Baum election sign in the window, saying that "Not a single Democrat is willing to set foot in your business," and that if Baum won, "it will be because of people like you. And I will never set foot in here again."

During the public comment time Tuesday, Goff said he had been approached by a Christensen "campaign advisor" two weeks ago who said her supporters were avoiding Abbondanza because of comments Goff made after the note became public, and because of a previous Bryan Baum campaign donation.

"I was told if I could meet with Polly, maybe the screws could be loosened," Goff said, who called the approach "petulant."

Christensen, refusing Goff's description of her as a "professional political activist," said she was vaguely aware of the conversation Goff had with one of her supporters, but didn't know what exactly had happened. She also said his remarks were a poor use of public comment time.

"This is supposed to be a public forum for people to discuss public policy," she said. "It's not supposed to be a forum for junior high-level gossip and personal attacks."

A later commenter, resident Steve Strong, said he didn't want to see party politics get mixed up with the City Council's business.

"We need to recruit help on both sides to make sure there's not aisles, there's not partisanship in the City Council," he said.